s I am concerned."

He made her a low bow. "You listening, Trevor? I'll bet she never said
that to you."

But Chris turned swiftly away towards her _fiance_. "There is no need to
say anything of that sort to Trevor," she said, in her quick way. "He
understands without."

"Thank you," said Trevor quietly.

Jack laughed. "One to you, my boy! I admit it frankly. By the way, I
heard a funny story about you yesterday. Someone said you were turning
your rooms in Clive Street into a home for sick organ-grinders. Is it
true by any chance?"

"Not strictly," said Mordaunt.

"Nor strictly untrue either," commented Jack. "I know the sort of thing.
You are always doing it. Was it a child or a woman or a monkey this
time?"

"It was a man," said Mordaunt.

"A man! A friend of yours, I suppose?" Jack smiled over the phrase. He
had heard it on Mordaunt's lips more than once.

"Exactly. A friend of mine." The tone of Mordaunt's reply did not
encourage further inquiries.

Chris, glancing at him, saw a slight frown between his brows, and
promptly changed the subject.

"It's really rather good of Aunt Philippa to let me have the boys here,"
she said later, when they were alone together for a moment just before he
took his departure. "She never gets on with them, especially Max. Of
course it's partly his fault. I hope you will like each other, Trevor."

By which sentence Trevor divined that this was her favourite brother.

"We shall get on all right," he said.

"It isn't everyone that likes Max," she said. "But he's tremendously nice
really, and very clever. What time will you be here to-morrow? I must try
not to keep you waiting."

But of course when the morning came she did keep him waiting. With the
best intentions, Chris seldom managed to be ready for anything. And
Mordaunt had nearly half an hour to wait before she joined him.

She raced down at last with airy apology. "I'm very sorry really. But it
was Cinders' fault. We went to be photographed, and I couldn't get him to
sit at the right angle. And then when I got back I had to dress, and
everything went wrong."

She was carrying Cinders under her arm and evidently meant him to join
their expedition. She did not look as if everything had gone wrong with
her, neither did she look particularly penitent. She laughed up at him
merrily, and he--because he could not help it--drew her to him and kissed
her.

"Oh, but you should kiss Cinders too," she said. "I love kiss